Palermo, California

Palermo is a census-designated place (CDP) in Butte County, California, United States. The population was 5,555 at the 2020 census, up from 5,382 at the 2010 census.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , of which, 99.95% of it is land and 0.05% is water.

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Palermo has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps.

History

The town was named after Palermo, Sicily due to its excellent climate for growing olives. The first post office was established in 1888.
The area was home to a country club, two railroad stations, gold mining, a brick yard, library, general mercantile store, school and even a semi-pro baseball team. The rich clay soil attracted the planting of olive and orange orchards and a thriving zucca melon industry.
Mining magnate George Hearst purchased 700 acres in 1888, and then subdivided.
There is an annual festival held every September centered at Palermo Park to help raise funds to support the Palermo Community Council's Sheriff Substation.

In December 2024, a disgruntled man experiencing mental illness and homelessness opened fire at the town's Seventh-Day Adventist school, seriously wounding two children before killing himself. He had no known connections to the school but went to a SDA school in nearby Paradise as a child.

Demographics

2020

The 2020 United States census reported that Palermo had a population of 5,555. The population density was . The racial makeup of Palermo was 64.3% White, 1.2% African American, 3.9% Native American, 5.0% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 12.9% from other races, and 12.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 25.2% of the population.

The whole population lived in households. There were 1,992 households, out of which 28.3% included children under the age of 18, 48.9% were married-couple households, 7.0% were cohabiting couple households, 21.9% had a female householder with no partner present, and 22.1% had a male householder with no partner present. 24.3% of households were one person, and 12.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.79. There were 1,389 families (69.7% of all households).

The age distribution was 22.0% under the age of 18, 7.8% aged 18 to 24, 22.3% aged 25 to 44, 27.3% aged 45 to 64, and 20.7% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 42.8years. For every 100 females, there were 103.1 males.

There were 2,173 housing units at an average density of , of which 1,992 (91.7%) were occupied. Of these, 75.6% were owner-occupied, and 24.4% were occupied by renters.

In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that 9.1% of the population were foreign-born. Of all people aged 5 or older, 80.7% spoke only English at home, 16.8% spoke Spanish, 1.2% spoke other Indo-European languages, 1.1% spoke Asian or Pacific Islander languages, and 0.3% spoke other languages. Of those aged 25 or older, 82.6% were high school graduates and 12.3% had a bachelor's degree.

The median household income in 2023 was $47,893, and the per capita income was $29,667. About 14.4% of families and 21.0% of the population were below the poverty line.

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Palermo had a population of 5,382. The population density was . The racial makeup of Palermo was 3,901 (72.5%) White, 39 (0.7%) African American, 221 (4.1%) Native American, 246 (4.6%) Asian, 4 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 642 (11.9%) from other races, and 329 (6.1%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,281 persons (23.8%).

The Census reported that 5,382 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 1,940 households, out of which 635 (32.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 1,023 (52.7%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 212 (10.9%) had a female householder with no husband present, 167 (8.6%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 141 (7.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 7 (0.4%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 416 households (21.4%) were made up of individuals, and 184 (9.5%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.77. There were 1,402 families (72.3% of all households); the average family size was 3.18.

The population age distribution is 1,310 people (24.3%) under the age of 18, 463 people (8.6%) aged 18 to 24, 1,157 people (21.5%) aged 25 to 44, 1,487 people (27.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 965 people (17.9%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.0 males.

There were 2,102 housing units at an average density of , of which 1,940 were occupied, of which 1,480 (76.3%) were owner-occupied, and 460 (23.7%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 8.0%. 4,049 people (75.2% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 1,333 people (24.8%) lived in rental housing units.

Education

Most of it is in the Palermo Union Elementary School District, while parts extend into the Oroville City Elementary School District. All of it is the Oroville Union High School District.
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The vast majority of high school students who live in Palermo go to Las Plumas High School.

References

External links

Palermo Community Website

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Census-designated places in Butte County, California
Census-designated places in California